Beazley pays no mind to polls

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Opposition Leader Kim Beazley says he is not paying any
attention to two new polls showing Prime Minister John Howard's
popularity at its lowest level in four years.

An ACNielsen poll has Labor leading the coalition 41 per cent to
40 per cent in the primary vote, and 54 to 46 on a two-party
preferred basis.

It also showed support for the prime minister had plunged 10
percentage points to 49 per cent, leaving him ahead of Mr Beazley,
whose support eased four points to 42 per cent.

Mr Beazley said it was significant the poll showed 60 per cent
of Australians who were aware of the government's plans to overhaul
the industrial relations system opposed the reforms.

"I don't need a public opinion poll to tell me what the
Australian people are telling John Howard and this government," he
told reporters in Perth.

"The Australian people are saying to John Howard and this
government: 'Back off and back off now'."

Mr Beazley said while polls went up and down, the feedback on
the public response to the planned industrial changes made this one
"particularly significant".

"In this case, what the polls are saying is what we feel anyway
from the street corners, in the demonstrations around the workplace
. . . everywhere there is concern," he said.

Meanwhile, Mr Beazley has called on Mr Howard to guarantee his
planned industrial reforms would not allow employers to use
individual contracts to reduce workers' annual leave entitlements
from four to two weeks.

Speaking to workers at a Perth hospital, Mr Beazley said a
reduction in the levels of annual leave would significantly impact
on the lives of ordinary Australians.

He said there had been statements by Workplace Relations
Minister Kevin Andrews to the effect "that people will be able to,
or pressured to" bargain away their annual leave.

"Give us a guarantee now, John Howard, that people will not lose
their annual leave or be able to bargain it away," he said.

"Four weeks annual leave is what makes work and family
sustainable.

"Reduce this to two weeks - the American levels - and you will
materially affect family life in this country.

"We all know what the so-called bargain will be - the bargain
will be either you agree to accept two weeks annual leave or you
will lose your job."